CIWS Upgrades Keep Lincoln Combat Ready: "USS Abraham Lincoln successfully completed a test firing of its Close In Weapons System (CIWS) March 9, after receiving an upgrade during the ship's 2009 maintenance period.
Upgrades to the close-in self-defense weapon system included transition from block 1 baseline 0, to block 1 baseline 2, allowing the gun to fire 4,500 rounds per minute instead of 3,000 as previously capable by using compressed high pressure air instead of hydraulics to release the rounds faster.
The test fire, called a Pre-action Aim Calibration Fire or PACFIRE, lasted about an hour and resulted in the successful firing of approximately 900 rounds from the ship's three CIWS mounts. The purpose of the PACFIRE is to calibrate the aim of the system, ensuring the rounds reach exactly where the radar sees the target."
